Caputo: Blame is everywhere for demise of the Detroit Tigers

Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera stands on the field during the eighth inning in Game 3 of baseball's AL Division Series against the Baltimore Orioles Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

It ended with the season placed where it shouldn’t have been — on the shoulders of minor league infielder Hernan Perez.

It ended in the way this town strongly suspected all along it would — with a whimper, and all the hope and expectations squashed.

It wasn’t just Perez’s tailor-made double play ground ball with the tying run at second base, and the potential winning-run at first, during the ninth inning Sunday.

Or the Tigers’ 2-1 loss to Baltimore in Game 3 of the ALDS, which completed a three-game series sweep for the Orioles.

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Or even questionable plays and decisions that cost the Tigers the first two games of the series in Baltimore.

It was the season as a whole.

“It was kind of up and down,” Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said.

Mostly down, ultimately, though.

Nothing against the Tigers’ winning their fourth straight American League Central Division title, but it only would have held significance as the means to an end. The club Detroit edged out, the Kansas City Royals, has outperformed the Tigers’ in the postseason. So what was the advantage of winning the division title again?

The Tigers have their share of strengths — starting pitching, power and the “star” factor. Yet, none of it could overcome a dreadful bullpen, which imploded as if on cue during the postseason, along with a bench full of Triple-A caliber players, and limited range defensively.

The Orioles have an excellent bullpen. They are solid defensively. They were able to insert Delmon Young as a pinch hitter, and he delivered the blow that changed the course of the series in Game 2 – a three-run double.

The Orioles have just enough power with Nelson Cruz leading the way. And they proved to be more than the Tigers could handle.

“It is disappointing,” Ausmus said. “You feel like you let the fans down, you let the organization down, you let the Ilitch family down. There is nothing you can do about it now.”

The Tigers starting pitching was solid. “It’s not exactly like we beat them up,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said.

The Tigers also clubbed a few extra base hits. However, they just weren’t remotely multi-dimensional enough to make a deep postseason run, let alone capture the franchise’s first World Series championship since 1984.

The widely held belief is the Tigers’ window of opportunity is about to close. Max Scherzer and Victor Martinez are eligible for free agency, and will command a lot of attention on the free agent market. Torii Hunter is older, and while he did some good things the second half of this season, it appears more than likely the Tigers will not re-sign him.

The Tigers have their share of excess baggage. They are stuck with embattled closer Joe Nathan for another season.

But regardless of what transpires with pending free agents, the Tigers still have a solid nucleus, and what should be a legitimate contending team.

It would be reasonable to expect bounce back seasons from Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera, a full-season and an off-season removed from their core-related surgeries. There is hope for reliever Joakim Soria, assuming the Tigers exercise his $7 million club option.

The Tigers’ starting rotation is likely going to be Verlander, David Price, Anibal Sanchez and Rick Porcello. Ian Kinsler is a solid player. There is no reason to expect J.D. Martinez will slump.

General manager Dave Dombrowski lost his Midas touch. The trade of Doug Fister to Washington during the off season was very costly because the Tigers got nothing of significance in return.

Ausmus made a poor decision in the Game 2 of the ALDS to remove Sanchez to start the eighth inning, but it wasn’t like he was presented with a balanced team, either.

Can the Tigers fix this? It’s possible.

But after the way this postseason concluded, it is difficult to look past the cloud hanging above Comerica Park.

About the Author

Pat Caputo has written as a beat writer and sports columnist for The Oakland Press since 1984 and blogs at http://patcaputo.blogspot.com/. Reach the author at pat.caputo@oakpress.com
or follow Pat on Twitter: @PatCaputo98.